Due to the recent high demand for Closed-circuit television (CCTV) systems worldwide, CCTV manufacturers increase production and develop many new high definition cameras with affordable price.
The objective of CCTV is to monitor and record any incidents that happen and it can be used as evidence. As such, more Singaporeans are choosing to install CCTV in their homes for surveillance and security purposes.
Installing surveillance CCTV cameras allows you to keep an eye over your home remotely. You can monitor the situation of your home, visitors and domestic helpers.
Of course, there are restrictions for the use of CCTV in HDB as it infringes upon the rights and privacy of the neighbors.
Types of CCTV
There are three different type of CCTV cameras based on whether or not they’re wired:
- Wired: uses cables to connect itself to the power source and an internet network.
- Wireless: connects to the internet via Wi-Fi, and uses cables to get its power.
- Battery Operated: connects to the internet via Wi-Fi, and runs on batteries.
Next, you can also further categorize the types of CCTV cameras based on its compression system:
- Analog cameras and Digital Video Recorder: Using coaxial cable to transmit analog video signal to Digital Video Recorder where video footage is recorded in the harddisk.
- IP network cameras and Network Video Recorder: Using Cat 5e or Cat 6 to transmit digital video to Network Video Recorder where video footage is recorded in the harddisk.
- Wireless IP Camera comes with Micro SD Card Storage: captures video footage either recorded in MicroSD Card or in the cloud.
Types of CCTV Storage
The next thing to consider, would be the storage for your CCTV. You can’t only rely on the CCTV camera’s storage capacity, instead consider the operating system and software.
You have the choice between a local storage or a cloud storage.
Local storage means that the data recorded by the CCTV cameras are stored within the equipment. Cameras with local videos can store it in four different ways:
- MicroSD cards, where you can connect the memory cards to different devices to view or transfer the data.
- USB drives, which work similarly to SD cards but are generally bigger in size.
- Digital Video Recorders (DVR), which turns raw footage from analog CCTVs into a digital video file using a cable, then stores it in a hard disk.
- Network Video Recorders (NVRs), which store footage via network. They can be as good as DVRs, but have higher resolution.
CCTV cameras using cloud storage send the recorded data to remote servers. This can be done by event-recording, which saves short clips whenever the motion detector is triggered, or continuous-recording, which saves everything.
There’s no right or wrong answer in choosing between local or cloud storage; it all depends on your needs. Local storage is more affordable and doesn’t require a running internet, but cloud storage can be more convenient to manage and install.
Where should you install the cameras?
The next step is to choose a good location for the installation of your new CCTV camera and DVR.
This is important as if it is installed in the right spot, you will be able to monitor the area more efficiently.
You can place it indoors; the living room, kitchen, bedroom, toilet or bathroom. Or even outdoors; balcony, poolside, or garage.
You can also install CCTV cameras on the roof of your house or building if possible, but make sure that they are placed in a way that they can capture all of the space in front of them
Preparation – the tools and materials needed
The last thing you need to make sure is to have all your materials prepared.
This includes the components of the CCTV camera, depending on the type you have decided on. You also need to prepare some basic tools to aid the CCTV installation process.
Again, this can vary depending on the types of CCTV cameras, so consult the installation guide carefully. Usually, though, you would need to keep an electric drill, a power adapter or receiver, screws, cables, and anchors close by.
